Mary Kom, Sindhu, Mirabai, Keshavan in IOA Athletes Commission
Five-time world champion boxer MC Mary Kom, two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu and Olympian Shiva Keshavan were elected unopposed as members of the IOA Athletes’ Commission in the elections held here on Monday. The ten players selected in the commission include Tokyo Olympic silver medalist weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, 2012 Olympic bronze medalist Gagan Narang, table tennis player Achanta Sharath Kamal, hockey player Rani Rampal, swordsman Bhavani Devi, sailing player Bajrang Lal and former shot put player O. Includes drinking.
Five out of ten players are women and all are Olympians. Only Keshavan is a Winter Olympian. Only ten players had filed their nominations and IOA Election Officer Umesh Sinha declared all of them elected unopposed. India’s first Olympic individual gold medalist shooter Abhinav Bindra and former hockey captain Sardar Singh will join the commission as members of the International Olympic Committee and the Asian Olympic Council. Both will have the right to vote.
Bindra was elected a member of the IOC Athletes’ Commission for eight years in 2018 while Sardar became a member of the OCA Athletes’ Commission for four years in 2019. Under the new constitution of the Indian Olympic Association, there should be an equal number of female and male representatives in the commission. Two members of the commission will be in the IOA Executive Council, which is to be elected on December 10.
Keshavan said, “This is a historic moment for the players in the country. For the first time in the history of the IOA, we will have an Athletes Commission. Our first meeting is on Tuesday in which it will be known who will be the president and vice-president. And for NSFs that do not have an Athletes Commission, the Executive Council may nominate one man and one woman to vote.
